Study: Workplace bullying rampant in the U.S.

American offices are often inhospitable, downright hostile landscapes.

According to a new study released by
Radius Global Market Research, workplace bullying affects nearly half of U.S. employees. Rather than
brash schoolyard violence and taunting, most workers are dealing with a
subtler epidemic of incivility. Unfortunately, the effects of rampant bad
behavior are serious and wide-ranging—for individuals and companies alike.

Companies might quibble over what, exactly, constitutes “bullying,” though
the
Workplace Bullying Institute describes it as “repeated mistreatment of an employee by one or more
employees; abusive conduct that is threatening, humiliating, or
intimidating; work sabotage, or verbal abuse.” Eighty-one percent of
respondents to this survey said they’d either witnessed or experienced such
behavior at work.

The most common complaint was being “ridiculed or reprimanded in front of
other staff,” which 29 percent of respondents mentioned. Twenty-three
percent admitted to experiencing “harassment based on looks, body type or
attire,” and 22 percent cited “coercion to take on extra hours.” One in
five of those who’d witnessed bullying said they had been subjected to
either “subtle or overt sexual harassment.”

The profound damage from bullying

Bullying, as one might imagine, is devastating for victims’ morale, which
directly affects the bottom line.
Unhappy employees are less likely to be productive, engaged, collaborative or loyal. They are
prime candidates to be low performers.

Increasingly, workplace bullies are attacking from all angles of the org
chart. Nearly 60 percent of respondents cited “co-workers” as the most
common perpetrators of bad behavior, and just 39 percent pointed the finger
at “managers.” Twenty-three percent said they’d been bullied by an
“executive,” and 20 percent reported suffering incivility from a
“subordinate.”

There’s no doubt workplace bullying is a widespread, serious issue that
requires a widespread, serious response. One tactic is to prioritize
recognition and praise, which, according to
Gallup, can boost employee productivity, engagement, loyalty and retention.
However, no amount of praise can offset a culture that tolerates
harassment, hostility and various forms of abuse.